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Saturday, January 28, 2017

I just saw a "friend" re-post an extreme right wing "news" story
(read: anything by Rita Skeeter) listing all the reasons why Trump's
(read: Voldemort) executive order temporarily banning immigrants (read:
squibs) and refugees (read: mudbloods) was the right thing to do for our
country. As disturbing as the story was, and as disturbing as it was
that this person agreed with it to the extent that they felt like
sharing it, what was was truly disturbing was their defense of the article. They posted in a comment "Better safe than sorry" (read: "Always Pure!").

We're already sorry, sorry and sorrowful that our nation has stooped to
this level. We are disheartened and heartbroken that the person who
occupies the highest seat in the land has ordered an ignorant, short
sighted, and bigoted order. If we, the people, let this stand we are a
disgrace to all who came before us paving the way.

I am a friend
of immigrants. I am a neighbor of refugees. I have been taught by and mentored by immigrants. I am
the grand daughter and great great grand daughter of immigrants. We all
come from somewhere. We all want our shot at living the American
dream. That dream is not only disappearing it is rapidly turning into a
nightmare. We are better than this.

What is especially frightening and terrifying to me are the number of Christians who are lauding this ban. I am a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Mormon, a Christian. What I am about to say is addressed to my fellow Mormons who are defending this ban as a good a necessary thing.

To
all those that cheer this ban, please take a hard look at LDS
church history. Look at all the times our people were legally swindled
because they were considered second class citizens. Look at all the
times when good people not of our faith looked
the other way when our people were hurt and harassed, because they were
afraid. Look at how we were driven out of cities and states time and
time again. Look at how many died in horrible conditions while fleeing
persecution, unwelcome at every turn. OK, now take a few minutes to ready this short article.How do you feel?

Now look at
the moments in our history that are horrific not because of our
persecution but because of what we did in retaliation...please don't try
to justify away the Mountain Meadows Massacre. A few Mormons were truly
terrible people who did awful things, but most of us were just seeking
refuge. Now look in the mirror, look at the photographs of your Mormon
ancestors...do you see terrorists?

How do you feel?Now watch this video all the way through.

How do you feel?

This is the first step of the new administration onto a
slippery slope. Ask any Jew how the holocaust started. It didn't start
with the gas chambers. It started with the government wanting to
identify them, you know for the good of the country...then to track them, again for the good of the country...then to limit their freedoms, also for the supposed good of the country...then to commandeer their belongings, because their country NEEDS it more than they do...then to separate them out from polite society...and
so on and so forth. IT STARTS SMALL. So small.

My grandma Toni left Germany in the 1930s afraid of what her country was becoming. She was allowed to immigrate. During WWII she was speaking on a party line telephone to her sister, who had also immigrated, in their native tongue, German. The neighbors reported them as spies and wanted them sent to an internment camp. They were peaceful immigrants, both married to your stereotypical red-blooded American patriots, mothers to American children, active members of their adopted communities, exercising their right to freedom of speech. Their "good" friends and neighbors allowed hysteria to get the better of them. I refuse to be the "good" friend and neighbor in this modern scenario.

"The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose,I will not, I cannot, desert to his foes;That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,I'll never, no never, no never forsake!" ~How Firm A Foundation by Robert Keen

Jesus
is revered by Islam, even though its followers do not consider
themselves Christians. Jesus willingly invited a traitor into his inner
circle. He loved the man that betrayed him, even though he knew what
would happen, he still gave him a chance. I would rather welcome in 999
good Muslims and 1 bad Muslim that might kill me, than turn a single one
away to save my own skin. As long as we've had immigration we've had immigrants who have committed crimes, formed gangs, and created problems. That's not because their immigrants but because they are human. Do not judge the many by the actions of the few. I am all for responsible legal immigration,
but this temporary ban is not that. How much is a single life worth?

"...and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how
great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!" ~D&C 18:15"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" ~John 15:13“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” ~Edmund Burke

"Because I have been given much I too must give" ~Grace Noll Cowell

"...For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more." ~Luke 12:48

"And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." ~Matthew 25:40

As members of the Christian community Mormons just spent a month+ celebrating the birth of our savior Jesus Christ. We read passages from the bible about the persecution of the Jews by a fearful governor of the land. Persecution that caused the holy family to seek sanctuary in Egypt as refugees. We remembered the life and pure love of the son of God, who welcomed into his inner circle a man who would betray him, and knowing full well what that man would do, loved him and cared for him anyway. He extended his love and his forgiveness even unto Judas who served him up to be tortured and killed. He loved him anyway.

To those of you who joyfully support this ban without even the slightest hint of compassion, but recently spent December contemplating and singing about and preaching about peace on earth and good will towards all men, I am saddened beyond words.Be
the peacemakers, not the mob. Be the example of Christ like love, not
the prejudiced government officials. Be the open arms, not the fearful onlookers who did nothing. Learn from history, please don't repeat it. Speak up, let the White House and your representatives and Senators know that this is not right. Support the civil rights attorneys and immigration attorneys who are fighting to keep their clients here legally. Donate a few dollars to the ACLU who is working hard to help refugees and immigrants immediately affected by this ban. Let the immigrants in your community know that they are welcome and loved and safe with you. If you want to do something in conjunction with the church, they have a program that you may have heard of under the hashtag or name I Was A Stranger.

I'm not perfect, far from it. My faults are many. I'm flawed and I'm weak and I make ugly mistakes that I am ashamed of.
But right now what I am is angry. Mr. Trump do what you will to me, I could care
less what happens to myself. Do not punish the good and innocent
because of fear and ignorance. I will
not be silent, I will not stand by and not react, I will not be a "good"
little woman who doesn't cause a scene. By all that is holy I will
absolutely cause a scene and I will not be ashamed of that.

I will not stand idly by and watch in silence as rights are stripped, as we are isolated from the outside world, and as people start quietly disappearing in the night. It is reassuring to see the love and acceptance of the Canadian government and people. Thank you Mr. Trudeau for your amazing example. It is reassuring that if our government loses its mind completely and people start disappearing, that the Canadian border is less than a day's drive from my home and that I have friends there who would welcome my loved ones to safety. Although if that nightmare of a worst case scenario comes to pass, I will not run, I will stay and fight for what is right. To those of you who would angrily dissent with the opinions expressed here, this is not said with malice towards you or with the intent to incite vitriolic argument. These opinions are shared with love. This is a plea for compassion, love, hope, and charity towards our fellow man. I would kindly suggest that you watch the historical drama "Good" starring Viggo Mortensen, and contemplate how small things escalate into massive conflicts, before you comment.

"3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

8 Charity never faileth..." ~1 Corinthians 3-8

Charity is the pure love of Christ. As Christians we should aspire to follow in his footsteps. Do not celebrate and blindly support a man who is the exact opposite of the definition of the pure love of Christ. This ban is the first small foray of evil sent to break down our charitable spirits. Immigration is good and necessary. We do need to provide legal channels to vet all immigrants, I'm not arguing that. We already have one of the most extensive and difficult immigration vetting processes in the world. The LDS church supports healthy, legal immigration. We do not need to ban immigration outright. Our president's mother and wife are immigrants. This ban is not about immigration it is about racial and religious bigotry. Do not let evil triumph. Do not let charity fail.

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

2016 is finally over. Everyone has been posting memes and talking about how awful it has been in general. It was a rough year for me personally. Last year my father passed away in April just a few months shy of his 94th birthday. It's difficult to encapsulate his life with any kind of brevity. It wasn't just that he lived a long time, almost a century, but that he filled all those years with love, travel, hobbies, and service.

Among the things that Dad loved were coca-cola, popcorn, his family, his work, music, airplanes (he was in the Army Air Corps in WWII and he retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force), bow ties, photography, and classic cars. He collected several antique vehicles and loved driving them in the local parades here in Cache Valley. After he lost his driver's license it fell to me to drive him in the parades almost every Saturday between May and September. Confession: I LOATHE driving in parades. I loved driving the cars, I hated doing it in such a public way. I don't like being in the public eye. Smiling and waving? NOT on the list of my favorite things. But dad loved it and I loved him, so I did it.

His last auto project was a 1970 Mercedes 450 SL convertible. He had owned it for a while but the body needed work. Wade at Straightedge Auto Restoration out of St Anthony did a beautiful job repairing and repainting the car. He was able to match the original Mercedes blue perfectly. The car was finished just a few months before dad passed away and Dad was so pleased with it. If you're in the Utah, Idaho, or Wyoming area and are looking to have restoration work done on a classic vehicle please look up the Straightedge Auto Restoration facebook page and give them a call, they do amazing work.

It had been a while since I had collaborated with any of my photographer friends and I wanted to do something to celebrate Dad and his beautiful cars. So I got a hold of Amber Rust at Two Color Photography and laid out what I wanted to do, she immediately jumped onboard and we started planning. I called on the amazing Ashley Palmer to be my MUA again, she did my makeup for the photoshoot with dad's 1968 Newport. Ashley also hooked me up with Amber at Kutting Edge salon for my hair. All of these ladies were awesome to work with. Ashley was especially patient as I kept bursting into tears while she was trying to do my makeup and it took way longer than it should have because of that.

Once the makeup and hair were done I got dressed, picked up the car, and drove over the hill to Garland to meet Amber at the abandoned Main Theater. We had managed to unknowingly plan the shoot for one of the hottest days of the year and I seriously worried on the drive over that I was going to sweat off all the makeup, but I arrived intact, if a tad sweaty. Luckily as we started a storm came up on the horizon and once the clouds covered the evening sun the temperature dropped about 20 degrees and made it more bearable. It was a lot of fun and I'm very grateful to everyone who helped make it happen.

My father's father was born in 1903, I was born in 1979, I thought the dates on the mural were fitting.

Contact Me!

I am a part time licensed massage therapist, and a cleaning lady here in Cache Valley. I also hold down a full time position as office manager at a great local company. Blogging is what I do when I'm not at one of my jobs or hanging out with my extended family or taking care of Molly the wonder dog and the chinchilla twins (tentatively renamed Leopold and Loeb).
I have no real hobbies anymore because I am usually too broke or don't have enough time, but I used to love: bellydance, photography, downhill skiing, playing piano, motorcycles, camping, hiking, travelling, going to concerts, horseback riding, ice skating, snowshoeing, cooking, baking, gardening, and reading.